We had the good fortune of connecting with Dr. Eric T. Merriweather and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Dr. Eric T., can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
I was really sitting and staring off into space and I feel like God just told me he wanted me to do this. He showed me the edifice of a sports complex and that I would be taking care of families who are in need. I had been coaching a lot of kids for track and field. They were always needing things such as food, clothing, personal care items and uniforms that they could not afford. That is how The African American Association of USA was born.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?

DR. ERIC MERRIWEATHER’S BIO

A competitor who strives for excellence on the field, in the boardroom and most importantly in the community describes Dr. Eric Merriweather at his core. Struggles have become his triumphs, enabling him to use this competitive spirit to guide him through life while bringing others along for the ride. Dr. Merriweather has always endeavored to make a change for all people and is excited to see this dream come to fruition in ways he could have never envisioned. In 2002, he founded The African American Association of Georgia, Inc. allowing him to be a champion for the underserved while executing his vision to touch the lives of people of all ethnicities in the Greater Atlanta Area.
Upon inception, the goals of The AAAG, Inc. have always been to provide mentoring, education, health and wellness as well as feeding programs to support the sustainability of families becoming whole again. Who would have thought almost 22 years ago working out of his garage Dr. Merriweather would be on this platform? He dared to dream and began his quest starting with serving 30 families, to now touching over 7,000 for almost two decades. The AAAG, Inc. consistently serves 1100+ families each month. If you ask Dr. Merriweather about his accomplishments, he will tell you that it’s not enough. This is only Phase I of a multi-phase destiny.
Through his walk and creation of The AAAG, Inc., Dr. Merriweather also founded the track club “Sprint Athletics” in 2005 both as a means to continue nurturing the sport he loves and to give young people an opportunity to strive for greatness, build character and create direction for their lives. To this day, he continues to train and compete in track and field on the Master’s circuit throughout the World. Some of his accomplishments include a Masters Olympic World Games Two-Time Gold Medalist and Masters 8-Time World Champion Gold, Silver and Bronze Medalist (both indoors and outdoors). Dr. Merriweather has sat  on the USATF-GA Board as a Vice President of Sponsorship and the Safe Sport Coordinator for USATF GA Association. Hard work and dedication within the track and field arena has given him an opportunity to absorb all the world has to offer, which he uses to motivate his athletes and community youth he mentors on a regular basis. This coaching and mentoring has led to 90% of his track athletes receiving track scholarships at some of the top universities. Dr. Merriweather is one of the first coaches to have six track athletes in the SEC at one time in Georgia.

As if philanthropy through The AAAG and Sprint Athletics wasn’t enough, Dr. Merriweather started his acting and voiceover career in 2015 and has been featured on several TV-One series such as For My Man, Atlanta Homicide, Fatal Attraction. His accomplishments in Films are The Gallery, The Chair, Chocolate Thunder, Among Pigeons and Intractable. Dr. Merriweather continues his career in acting striving to do a feature film in the future.
Dr. Merriweather also has the following accomplishments:

• The published author of “Knowing Your Identity through Christ”, released by Tate Publishing Company in 2011.
• A registered Certified Life Coach in Atlanta where he teaches individuals on how to deal with life struggles and recognizing that they are capable of greater success throughout their everyday life.
• Featured on NBC 11Alive Atlanta & Company 2015, The CBS Evening News, Fox News Atlanta, ABC WSBTV Atlanta, CBS46 Atlanta News, Atlanta Business Journal Radio with K.C. Pride and News & Talk Radio WAOK with Dr. Rashad Richey.
• Has articles written about his accomplishments and career in Voyage ATL Magazine, About Insider Magazine, Voyage LA Magazine, New Balance Outdoor Nationals Magazine,
• The 2017 Humanitarian Award honoree of the Legendary Awards recognized for all his endeavors for giving back to the community.
• June Man of Honor from the Wayne Gandy Sports Joc Show.
• The John Chaplin Honoree 2017 from the National Scholastic Foundation/New Balance Outdoor Nationals.
• The recipient of the President Barack Obama Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award for 2017.
• 2017 Honorary Doctorate from TIU.
• Presented a Resolution on behalf of himself and The AAAG, Inc. by Senator Gail Davenport on the Georgia Senate Floor March 2018.
• The 2020 Humanitarian Award recipient from TIUA
• The recipient of the President Joseph Biden Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award for 2021

The new phase of Dr. Merriweather’s life has allowed him to launch The African American Association of USA, Inc. (The AAAUSA, Inc.) in 2016 where his goal is expanding his reach by providing even more families with the support they deserve. With the increased need for basic necessities, seeing how many families have been dependent on the hundreds of pounds of food families receive monthly, Dr. Merriweather has decided that it’s time to do more. The AAAUSA, Inc. has even begun to develop international partnerships to help youth in rural parts of Jamaica.
Dr. Merriweather’s ultimate vision is to provide an Education Sports Complex that will not only provide for basic needs, but will also provide free access to life skills programs, STEAM-based education, mentoring and sports teams for youth and their families. This project is currently underway and scheduled to be implemented by 2023.
Dr. Merriweather believes there are so many needs within the community, and it is his responsibility to address as many of them since the Lord gave him the vision and the strength to go forth in 2002. Though he has truly made an impact on the lives of thousands of people, he quickly reminds each of us that it is a mission that he alone did not and cannot achieve. Dr. Merriweather believes that together we are better.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My best friend Dr. Feleica Brown she is a real estate agent and has been for about 25 years. She supports and encourages me all the time. Ensuring me that I can do this and that I am great person and she is always praying for me. I always tell her that she is my guardian angel.

Website: theaaausa.org

Instagram: @emerriweather

Linkedin: Dr Eric T. Merriweather

Twitter: @ETMerriweather

Image Credits
Christian Germany

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